If you thought consultant creep had peaked, Nassau County just fetched a new trick: a multi-story “Animal Services Campus”—the vendor’s phrase, not ours—complete with the kind of glossy, donor-brochure flourishes you’d expect from a private foundation, not a county shelter funded by you. The submittal literally flags “complex multi-story design requirements” for the Nassau County Animal Services Campus.
Meanwhile, when you flip to the Costs section of the package, you get this: “Not Applicable.” Translation: the pitch deck sparkles, the price page shrugs.
Let’s talk “campus.” In shelter-planner speak, that’s multiple buildings, outdoor courtyards, and shared infrastructure—not a simple, durable intake-treat-transfer facility. Their own portfolio brags about campus layouts, two-story admin buildings, public-serving clinics, and more.
And the price class these folks typically play in? Their own pages tout:
- $24M Harris County (48,000 SF)
- $40M San Bernardino County (75,500 SF; campus layout, two-story admin)
- $40M Liberty Dogs training campus (90,000 SF; campus master plan)
So when you hear chatter about ~$3 million for consulting and a preliminary cost estimate of $36 MILLION to build the building, know that this is the goal of the consultant so they can add another bullet item on their website. If it costs too little, there’s less bling. Also, when the construction costs go up, so do the consultant’s fees…since they are generally based on a percentage of the construction cost.
During BOCC deliberation of this item, it was said that Nassau County will be on the cutting edge with such a facility. This is about Commissioner and Manager’s legacies, not constituent’s needs. The wall plaque identifying those who approved it is already being made as we speak.
Ask yourself (and your Commissioner):
- Who benefits from a showpiece when a sturdy metal building with medical and admin would do the job at a fraction of the cost?
- How much is it going to cost to operate this “state of the art” facility?
- Has any commissioner or county manager toured any of the other facilities they are modeling this after?
Our take
Build function, not flair. Nassau needs a pragmatic, durable, cost-smart shelter—not a glass-and-steel monument to consultant culture. Pull this back. Reset the scope. Spend on care and outcomes, not canopies and courtyards. These pets don’t need a “campus” – they need loving homes to take them in.
See for yourself (and note the “campus” language) in the attached.
NOTE: Out of respect for the taxpayers, NassauFLDOGE will conduct a full forensic review of this project and share the results in a follow-up report. Can you imagine this nearly $40 Million dollar expenditure for a stray pet intake center will pass the muster of Florida DOGE? Would this be considered a “good use” of taxpayer dollars? Just asking!
